Archive for
October, 2012

Eating and travelling are two pleasures that go naturally together. How delightful, to visit a new country and experience all kinds of strange dishes and exotic y treats you’ve never heard of or even imagined.

However, these combined pleasures can prove hazardous… especially for those with a delicate digestive system. It’s not uncommon for a joyride of the gustative sense can quickly turn into a rushed ride to the local hospital. In case you want to minimize the odds of experiencing such an unpleasant turn of events, there are general guidelines to keep in mind, which will be covered in this article.

Keep the following advice in mind, and you’ll go a long way towards avoiding food poisoning while traveling around the world.

Take it Easy on the Spicy Food

When trying foreign food you’re not used to, a good rule of thumb is to take it easy on spicy foods, even if you’re used to eating them back home. In some cultures, they will use spices your body just isn’t used to, or otherwise use outrageous amounts of common spices. This can easily wreak havoc on your digestive system, so it’s wise not to stuff yourself on such foods right away; the first time you a new spicy dish, do it in moderation to see how your body handles the heat.

Don’t Buy From Any Street Vendor

In some countries, buying food from street vendors can be a gastronomic Russian roulette. Some vendors will sell decent food, while many others will be adepts of utterly horrifying hygienic standards. You can’t always know for sure before it’s too late, but often you’ll get a good sense of it by attentively watching how they handle the food (and how they store the ingredients) before making your choice.

Lookout For Flies Near Food

When exploring an exotic country, you may get so smitten about all the local wonders that you fail to notice the small, but important details…. such as flies frolicking around on exposed food, the all too common avatars of food poisoning through parasites and bacteria. Whenever you notice flies near food, it’s usually a good idea to move along and find another place to eat.

Beware of all seafood

The thing about seafood is how they nourish themselves by filtering the surrounding water; so if they happen to grow on contaminated water, those delicious treats will become genuinely delicious deposits of concentrated toxic substances. For this reason, you want to minimize your chances getting food poisoning during your travels… you should essentially avoid indulging on any kinds of seafood.

Avoid eating raw foods

Most dangerous bacteria and germs are destroyed by the cooking process; as such, they are often alive and kicking in all kinds of raw food (including salads). For this reason, you should make sure all the food you eat abroad is well cooked.

Carefully wash fruits and vegetables

For the same reason as above, you should be extremely careful when eating local vegetables and unpeeled fruits. Since there might be all kinds of unpleasant surprises lurking the surface of such foods, you want to make sure to wash them thoroughly before eating them; if possible, soak them in a bowl of water with some drops of vinegar for a few minutes.

Favor bottled or boiled water

Drinking contaminated water is another easy way to get your vacations ruined by food poisoning. To avoid this scenario, it’s best to favor drinking bottled water or otherwise make sure the water is boiled before you drink it.

Do not put ice in your drinks

On a hot day, it may be tempting to ask for some ice to put in your drinks. The problem is that you never know what kind of water they used to make that ice; and often it will have been the worst possible kind of water. For this reason, it’s best to just do without ice altogether.

Keep this advice in mind during your next adventure abroad, and your odds of picking up food poisoning will be much lower!

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